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Many on floodplains don't have insurance

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Photo by Al Hoch

Laura Jackowski's home on Lake Koshkonong is underwater as the result of recent flooding across southern Wisconsin.

JANESVILLE — The water comes halfway up the door at Laurie Jackowski's home in Binghams Point.

She and her family had to evacuate to her sister's home, and the only way she can reach her house in Koshkonong Township, just over the Jefferson County line, is by boat.

Yet Jackowski is one of the fortunate ones in her neighborhood. Not only was she able to move most of her belongings out of the house, she also has insurance covering the house and contents.

"I'm really glad I have this insurance," she said.

Some of her neighbors are not so fortunate. In fact, many people living in Rock County's floodplains don't have flood insurance, even though it's required by most mortgage companies.

"A lot of people can't afford it," Jackowski said.

Janesville City Manager Steve Sheiffer recently estimated that 85 percent of residents in the Mole & Sadler's subdivision, one of the hardest-hit residential areas in the city, don't have flood insurance.

Dorothy Botsford is one of them. The 84-year-old has only once seen flooding in her home at 1107 Hamilton Ave., Janesville, in the 59 years she's lived there.

After the flood of 1959, she and her husband raised the home three cinder blocks high. She didn't buy flood insurance because she figured the water would never reach that high, she said.

Now, she's not so sure. The water hadn't reached her home Tuesday, but she said she'd never seen flooding this bad.

But she's still satisfied with her decision not to buy flood insurance when she thinks about how much money she's saved in the nearly 50 years since.

"When you figure how expensive it is, it's very, very expensive," she said.

Flood insurance for floodplain residents can vary from $600 a year in Mole & Sadler's to $1,500 in Binghams Point.

But the price is worth it when you look at this week's flooding, said Randy Wagner, an agent with State Farm Insurance in Janesville.

Most mortgage companies require homebuyers in floodplains—areas defined by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Federal Emergency Management Agency—to purchase flood insurance. But owners sometimes let the policy lapse, and mortgage companies often don't notice, Wagner said.

The insurance is backed by FEMA. It covers up to $250,000 in structural damage and $100,000 in contents, Wagner said.

By contrast, because Rock County has been declared a disaster area, FEMA will cover up to $28,800 for uninsured residents for things such as emergency home repairs, rent assistance and medical assistance, said Meredith Helgerson, a spokeswoman with the Wisconsin Emergency Operations Center.

Homeowners can only receive the assistance once, she said. After that, they must buy flood insurance.

"The $28,800 is simply to help you get going again," she said. "But once it happens once, you have a responsibility to take the proper course of action in case it happens again."

But Wagner said those without insurance shouldn't necessarily expect to get even that much.

"(FEMA's) tendency is to offer maybe a little bit of money, and then the bulk of it they're just going to offer you a low-cost loan," he said.

That could be a huge blow to people who still owe money on their mortgages, Wagner said.

"If their house is a total loss, they'll be making payments on something they don't own anymore," he said. "It's similar to driving a car without insurance."

Botsford doesn't have a mortgage on her house, and she's not too worried about the water. If her house does flood, she doesn't think it will be more than a few inches, she said.

Jackowski, on the other hand, already is preparing to file her claim with an insurance adjustor. She took a boat to her home Wednesday to take pictures of the flooding.

"Until the water recedes, the adjustor can't even get to the house," she said.

ABOUT FLOOD INSURANCE

-- The National Flood Insurance Program, part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, insures up to $250,000 structural damage and $100,000 content damage in the case of flood.

-- Homeowners buy the insurance through private insurance agents, but it’s underwritten by the federal government.

-- Some insurance agencies offer flood insurance and some don’t. Try calling your home insurer first. If he or she doesn’t offer it, check www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/ and click “agent locator” to find an agent who does.

-- Most mortgage companies require homebuyers living in government-defined floodplains to buy flood insurance. Rates vary depending on where you live and the plan you choose. People who don’t live in a floodplain can buy flood insurance, too, usually at a cheaper rate.

-- To buy flood insurance, your community must participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, meaning they accept the floodplain maps and follow certain building standards within the floodplain. All Rock County townships participate in the program through the county. Most, if not all, villages and cities do, too, said Andrew Seils, an insurance agent with Dave Mosher & Associates in Evansville.

-- There is a 30-day wait for coverage after you buy flood insurance. So if you buy flood insurance today, you will be covered for damage occurring July 20 or after.

-- If you are having flooding problems and are insured, call your insurer immediately, said Rick Wagner, an agent with State Farm Insurance in Janesville. While cleaning up, take pictures of everything before throwing it away, he said.